Sony is deleting digital libraries that were supposed to be accessible “forever”

How long is “forever”? When it comes to digital media, forever could be as close as a couple of months.

Funimation, an anime streaming service owned by Sony, recently Announced that subscribers’ digital libraries on the platform will not be available after April 2. For years, Funimation had been tell subscribers that they could continue streaming these digital copies of purchased movies and shows, but qualifying it: “forever, but there are some restrictions.”

Funimation’s parent company, Sony, bought rival anime streaming service Crunchyroll in 2021. Since then, it was suspected that Sony would merge the offerings in some way. This week we learned how, as Funimation announced that its app and website would be shutting down on April 2, and Funimation accounts will be converted to Crunchyroll accounts. Most of Funimation’s catalog is already on Crunchyroll, Funimation’s announcement stated.

But in addition to offering video streaming, Funimation also dubbed and released anime as physical media, and sometimes those DVDs or Blu-rays featured a digital code. Subscribers to Funimation’s streaming service can add those digital codes to Funimation and then stream the content from the platform.

Since Funimation claims that customers can access these digital copies “forever,” I could see why someone might have thought this was a reliable way to access purchased media. For people who lacked the space, resources, or interest in maintaining a physical media library, this was a good way to preserve treasured shows and movies without spending more money. It also provided an easy way to access purchased media online if, for example, you were traveling and felt like watching some anime DVDs you purchased.

But soon, people who have discarded or lost their physical media or who don’t have a way to play DVDs and Blu-rays will have no way to access the digital copies to which they were entitled by purchasing a physical copy.

Funimation’s announcement says:

Please note that Crunchyroll does not currently support digital copies from Funimation, meaning access to previously available digital copies will not be supported. However, we are continually working to improve our content offering and provide you with an exceptional anime streaming experience. We appreciate your understanding and encourage you to explore the extensive anime library available on Crunchyroll.

Regarding refunds, Funimation’s announcement directed customers to their support team “to see the options available based on your payment method,” but there’s no mention of getting money back for a DVD or Blu-ray that you might not have purchased if you knew you couldn’t stream it “forever.”